I served as Li Bai's page.

I returned to my room, completely relaxed, and fell asleep quickly after lying down on the bed.

The next morning, before she even left her room, Ziyi called out from outside, "Yuehua, get up quickly! Miss has been waiting for you outside for a long time."

I opened the door, and Miss Moon and Purple Robe were standing at my door.

"Yuehua, go wash up and have breakfast, then come to my study," Yueyuan said.

"Okay, I'll go right away."

Ziyi and I arrived at the cafeteria. I asked Ziyi, "What did you tell Miss? Didn't you say you wouldn't tell her?"

"As soon as we got back, she kept asking us how Young Master Wu was. Uncle Lin, who went with us, said he hadn't seen him. We had no choice but to tell her that Young Master Wu had passed away from illness."

After I finished breakfast, I went to the study, where Yueyuan was sitting at her desk looking out the window.

I entered the study, knelt before Yueyuan, and said, "Miss, I failed to take good care of Young Master Wu. Please punish me."

Yueyuan reached out and pulled me up: "Tell me in detail, how did Young Master Wu die?"

"That winter, on the banks of Huanhua Creek in Chengdu, Young Master Wu caught a cold from the wind. Back at the inn, he developed a fever and cough. We called a doctor to treat him, and he recovered after taking medicine. Later, in Chongqing, his cough returned. We consulted a doctor, who diagnosed him with tuberculosis. He recovered again after taking medicine. He and the young master both wanted to visit Dongting Lake. While crossing the Yangtze River, we encountered a frozen river and were stranded at the foot of Wushan Mountain for several months. During this time, his cough returned. Later, when we went to Lumen Mountain, his cough stopped. This cycle repeated itself. When we visited Junshan Mountain in Dongting, at the tombs of Ehuang and Nüying, he suddenly vomited blood. When the young master carried him back to the shore of Dongting Lake, he gave the young master this jade rabbit pendant. Just as he was about to speak, he vomited blood again and died."

After I finished speaking, I handed the jade rabbit pendant to Yueyuan, who was already sobbing uncontrollably. She took the pendant, clutched it to her chest, and bit her lip to stop herself from crying out loud.

At this moment, the old lady, supported by Aunt Lu, walked in and said:

"Daughter, if you want to cry, just cry. Don't hold it in; it'll make you feel better."

The old lady went over, and Yueyuan hugged her tightly, crying, "Mother, my heart aches so much."

"It's not easy for your mother to bear it either. It's all fate that Young Master Wu was diagnosed with an incurable disease," the old lady said.

"Because of the hot weather, the young master temporarily buried Young Master Wu by Dongting Lake, saying that he would move Young Master Wu's grave back to Qinglian when he returned home."

"That's good too. When my son returns, he will have returned to his roots," the old lady said.

At this moment, Uncle Lu asked from outside the study door, "Madam, the feng shui master has been found. Would Miss and Yuehua like to come with us to take a look?"

"Uncle Lu, yes, we're going. The young master said the young lady can choose the place herself."

After wiping away her tears, Yueyuan went back to her room to get a hat with a veil, and then walked with us out of Longxi Courtyard.

We arrived at the back of Longxi Courtyard. After several measurements, the feng shui master selected the location mentioned by Li Bai, and the location for building the embroidery tower and the start date were determined.

After seeing the feng shui master off, I said to Uncle Lu, "Uncle Lu, things will definitely be very busy at home from now on. Please don't hesitate to tell me what you need me to do."

Uncle Lu said, "You'll be working hard. Building a house is unlike anything else; it requires strict oversight at every level. Go ask Miss what kind of boudoir she wants to build, and if she can draw up a sketch."

"Okay, I'll go find Miss right away." After I finished speaking, I walked into the inner courtyard and headed towards Yueyuan's boudoir.

"Miss, are you there? It's Yuehua. I need to talk to you," I called out as I knocked on the door.

When Yueyuan opened the door, her eyes were red and swollen, clearly from crying.

"Uncle Lu asked me to ask what kind of embroidered pavilion you'd like to build, and whether you could draw a sketch."

"Come on, let's go to the study to paint." After saying that, Yueyuan led me to the study.

"What kind of embroidered pavilion does my brother imagine building for me to be?" Yueyuan asked.

"The young master didn't say anything specific, only that he would build you a two-story embroidered pavilion," I said.

Yueyuan picked up her pen and drew a two-story courtyard-style embroidered building on the paper, with bamboo planted along the windows of the courtyard.

I took the drawings to Uncle Lu: "Uncle Lu, Miss has finished drawing."

Uncle Lu took the blueprints, looked them over, and said, "We will start construction on time tomorrow."

"Is there anything I can do for you, Uncle Lu?" I asked.

"Not for now. Once construction starts, you and Ziyi can take turns keeping an eye on the site."

Aunt Lu walked over to us and said, "Yuehua, the old lady wants to see you."

I followed Aunt Lu to the old lady's room and said, "Madam, Yuehua greets you."

"Quickly, come here and tell me about the Xu family in Anlu, and about my daughter-in-law," the lady said.

"Madam, I'll show you a drawing of your daughter-in-law."

"Okay, Aunt Lu, go get some paper and pen. I want to draw while looking at Yuehua."

Aunt Lu went to the study to get paper and pen and spread them on the table. I thought about it carefully and then buried myself in drawing. A picture of Li Bai and Xu Ziyan holding hands and sitting on a swing in the garden was displayed in front of the old lady. Li Bai and Xu Ziyan were smiling as they looked at the old lady.

The old lady held the painting with obvious delight: "Look how beautiful my daughter-in-law is! No wonder my son stopped for her."

"Yuehua, tell me about their wedding. This should have been my responsibility, but my in-laws took it upon themselves."

"Madam, it's like this. Young Master bought a piece of land on Baizhao Mountain, not far from the Xu family home, and built a new house there. After the house was completed, Young Master and Madam moved in. This is because Young Master believes that living with the Xu family is tantamount to marrying into the Xu family, and he doesn't want that."

"Didn't you say he had no money? Where would he get the money to buy land?"

"Actually, the Xu family paid for it, but it was said to be the young master who paid. It was also a voluntary decision by the Xu family. The young mistress insisted on marrying no one but the young master, and Madam Xu did not want her daughter to marry far away, so they came up with this compromise."

"That's fine, as long as the young couple lives alone, my son won't suffer."

"The wedding was only attended by close relatives and neighbors from the Xu family. This was something the young master had agreed beforehand—a small-scale affair, still carried by eight bearers in a sedan chair. The ceremony was held at the new house on Baizhao Mountain. The young master and his family are only staying at the Xu family's house temporarily."

"Is the young master afraid that the master and I will worry, that he'll lose face in front of our relatives and friends by marrying into the Xu family? Is that why he did this?"

"I don't know, but the young master is very averse to the words 'marrying into another family,' so none of us dare to say it."

"What a thoughtful child. When you return to Anlu, tell him that the master, his family, and I don't care whether he marries into the Xu family or becomes part of the Xu family; we're happy as long as he's safe and happy."

"Yes, madam, I will definitely tell him when I return to Anlu, and tell him not to carry this mental burden."

"Yuehua, paint another picture of Young Master Bai Zhaoshan's new house for me, and also paint the young master and young mistress in it. Seeing the painting is like seeing my own son and daughter-in-law; it will make me content." The old lady thought for a moment and then said, "Paint two pictures, one to keep at home, and one for the master to take to Rencheng, Shandong."